Tuesday, 24 November 2009

Toronto's 54th homicide victim has been identified as someone who had belonged to the notorious Malvern Crew street gang.Alton Reid, 35, had been attending a birthday party at the Atlanta banquet hall on 1240 Ellesmere Rd. in Scarborough on the weekend when someone walked in and started shooting sometime after 3 a.m. on Sunday.Four people were found wounded at the scene, and Reid showed up later at hospital. He died of his injuries on Monday.Reid's autopsy is scheduled for Wednesday.He had been arrested in 2004 as part of Project Impact, a police crackdown on the gang following a vicious war between the Malvern Crew and the Galloway Boys. Police charged Reid with a number of offences:•aggravated assault •discharging a firearm •participating in a criminal organization •related conspiracy chargesProject Pathfinder targeted the Galloway Boys.Three Galloway Boys were found guilty in the March 3, 2004 murder of one men in Malvern. The court heard the trio were allegedly looking for Reid.Instead, they shot and killed Brenton Charlton and gravely wounded Leonard Bell as the two men sat stopped in their car at a light.Tyshan Riley, Philip Atkins and Jason Wisdom got life sentences for the attempted murder of Bell and a life sentence with no chance of parole for 25 years after being convicted of first-degree murder in the death of Charlton.

Philippine National Police detained a provincial chief and three officers on suspicion they may have been involved in the abduction and killing of dozens of supporters of a politician and the reporters covering him. The Maguindanao province police chief, Abusana Maguid, and the officers were relieved of their duties pending an investigation, National Police spokesman Leonardo Espina said in a mobile phone text message late yesterday. Maguid may bear “command responsibility” for his officers’ actions, Espina said. The officers were seen by witnesses at the location of the Nov. 23 violence on Mindanao island, he said.“This is just the beginning,” Espina said. “We will not stop. All who are responsible will be made accountable. There will be no sacred cows.” President Gloria Arroyo yesterday put Maguindanao and neighboring Sultan Kudarat province under a state of emergency as the excavation of newly dug mass graves revealed more bodies. The killings represent the worst single incident of election- related violence in the nation’s history, according to the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism.

The military said about 100 gunmen stopped a convoy of people on their way to file Buluan City Vice Mayor Esmael Mangudadatu’s application to run for provincial governor. Mangudadatu, who wasn’t in the convoy, told local media his wife was among those whose bodies were identified and that some of the women in the group were raped before they were killed.

Rival Families

Jesus Dureza, Arroyo’s adviser on Mindanao affairs, said he has met with the Mangudadatu family and relatives of Maguindanao Governor Andal Ampatuan. The two families, who were once allies, are now political rivals, the Philippine Daily Inquirer said. The Mangudadatus pleaded for justice, Dureza said in a phone interview late yesterday before he was cut off. The adviser, whom Arroyo tasked to form a crisis committee, didn’t reply to calls or text messages seeking more information. The Ampatuans pledged to cooperate with any investigation, he said in a GMA News TV interview. “No effort will be spared to bring justice to the victims and hold the perpetrators accountable,” Arroyo said yesterday. She deployed extra troops and ordered Director General Jesus Versoza, the national police chief, to lead the investigation into the killings. He’s already on Mindanao, Espina said. Twenty-four bodies were exhumed yesterday, bringing the death toll to 46, Chief Superintendent Josefino Cataluna, central Mindanao police director, said in a phone interview. Police will continue to dig at the site where the bodies were found, he said. Some 1,000 soldiers have been deployed to search for the suspects and secure Maguindanao’s “exit points,” Romeo Brawner, the armed forces spokesman, told reporters in Manila. Arroyo declared a state of emergency to prevent further violence in the region, Press Secretary Cerge Remonde said at a briefing in Manila. The last time an area in Mindanao was placed under a state of emergency was March 31, when militants from the Islamist Abu Sayyaf group threatened to behead one of three Red Cross workers who were taken hostage. Declaring a state of emergency gives the president the authority to use the military to quell violence, Cabinet Secretary Silvestre Bello III said in the same briefing. It may also give the president the legal basis to suspend the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus, he said. The writ allows courts to require the military or police to present persons they are holding and justify their detention. At least 12 journalists were among those killed, Reporters Without Borders said. “Never in the history of journalism have the news media suffered such a heavy loss of life in one day,” the Paris-based organization said in a statement, alleging there is a “culture of impunity and violence in the Philippines, especially in Mindanao.” Elections in the Philippines are often marred by bloodshed, with provincial politicians maintaining private militias. About 126 candidates and supporters were killed in the months leading to the 2007 elections and 186 in 2004, according to the Philippine Daily Inquirer. The Southeast Asian nation will choose a new president and thousands of national and local officials in May. The nation’s Commission on Elections will accept filings for candidacies until Dec. 1. Maguindanao is a “hotspot” for political unrest, Brawner, the armed forces spokesman, told ANC television after the first bodies were discovered on Nov. 23. Mindanao is home to most of the nation’s Muslim minority some of whom have been fighting a separatist war for decades. It’s also home to the al-Qaeda-linked militant group Abu Sayyaf and other groups engaged in kidnapping and other forms of terrorism.

Bergrin, a former AUSA with the U.S. attorney's office in New Jersey, is charged with leading a criminal enterprise that used violence, intimidation, and deceit to generate millions of dollars, reports the Philadelphia Inquirer. Among the most eye-catching allegations against him:

- That he used a Newark restaurant as a front for a cocaine-distribution network.- That he oversaw a $1,000-an-hour call-girl ring in New York City.- That he had a witness killed in one drug case, and hired a hitman to kill another.

You can read a key portion of the indictment here.Bergrin was first arrested in May. His lawyers have argued in court papers that prosecutors have tied together baseless cases. And they have argued successfully to have Bergrin removed from solitary confinement, where he had been held after his arrest in May. But since a more detailed indictment was filed earlier this month, they have said little publicly.According to an affidavit from an FBI agent, Bergrin came to serve as "house counsel for a number of criminal organizations, including . . . the Latin Kings, the Bloods, and a number of high-level drug-trafficking organizations." And Bergrin had "essentially become one of the criminals he represents," according to Ralph Marra, the acting U.S. attorney for New Jersey.His client list has also included Queen Latifah, Lil' Kim, and mobster Angelo Prisco, as well as a U.S. soldier accused of detainee abuse at Abu Ghraib, who Bergrin represented pro bono. Bergrin also repped the "King of All Pimps," Jason Itzler, who ran the high-end New York escort service, New York Confidential, that proved to be Eliot Spitzer's undoing. (Itzler called Ashley Dupre, "one of the best hookers ever.") Indeed, prosecutors allege that Bergrin took over the management of the company after Itzler was jailed in 2005.A retired Army Reserve major and the son of a New York City police officer, Bergrin, 53, was an Essex County prosecutor who later worked in the U.S. Attorney's Office in Newark, before starting a criminal defense practice in 1991.But he may have offered his clients more than just legal representation. The Inquirer reports:Though the indictment includes one murder and one murder conspiracy, investigators contend that witnesses have linked Bergrin to at least three other homicides.They also say Bergrin routinely bribed witnesses to win cases. And, they contend, when bribery wasn't an option, he resorted to violence."No witness, no case" was the phrase he used repeatedly in his criminal-defense work, authorities say.In addition to the charges related to bribery, witness intimidation, and running the escort service, Bergrin also allegedly used a Newark restaurant, Isabella's, as a front for drug dealing; and formed a real estate company that conducted phony mortgage deals. Bergrin's undoing may have come when he allegedly smuggled a cellphone into a jail so a client could call a Chicago hitman to set up the murder of a witness. Bergrin himself then traveled to Chicago to meet with the hitman, say the Feds.But the hitman was a cooperating witness. According to prosecutors, he recorded Bergrin saying things like: "Put on a ski mask and make it look like a robbery. . . . It cannot under any circumstances look like a hit . . . make it look like a home-invasion robbery."The hitman also recorded a conversation in which he told another lawyer, working with Bergrin, that Bergrin wanted to personally take part in the hit."He said he wants to do it with me," the hitman said "I said, 'No, Paul. For what you went to law school to become . . . stick with that s-.' Let me do what I have to do.' "Replied the other lawyer: "Paul's a stone killer, bro. . . . That's what he is. . . . He's done work [meaning, committed murder], bro." One underworld source, a former Bergrin client, told the Inquirer that Bergrin "enjoyed life on the edge." Sounds like he may have enjoyed it just a little too much.

Two suspects are being sought in a roundup of gang members suspected of videotaping robberies and assaults, then selling the tapes as entertainment.A third suspect police were looking for was located and arrested late Sunday.Denver police Friday announced 32 arrests of suspects who said they belonged to either the Rollin' 60s Crips gang or the Black Gangster Disciples gang. They are accused of robbing white or Latino men of wallets, iPods, and cash.Two suspects had not been arrested as of Sunday.A task force of Denver police, the FBI and District Attorney Mitch Morrissey's office identified 26 incidents since July.The assaults and robberies happened across Denver, including in the Lower Downtown, or LoDo, entertainment district which includes the 16th Street Mall near Coors Field and the Pepsi Center.

Robert Dempster son of a feared gangland figure has been banned from working on security sites over "public safety fears". Robert Dempster is not allowed to act as a guard after tough industry watchdogs swiped his licence. The 32-year-old - son of notorious Bobby 'The Devil' Dempster - is linked to Glasgow-based Ruchill Security. One underworld source last night said: "Dempster's son will have a fight on his hands to get his licence back. "Everyone knows that you don't get it suspended on a whim - and everyone knows Ruchill is far from squeaky clean. "But we are laughing up our sleeves. Ruchill is always slinging mud at everyone else - and for once it's stuck to one of them." Dempster Snr survived a feud with Arthur 'The Godfather' Thompson and was blamed for ordering a hit on security rival Lewis 'Scooby' Rodden. His son's licence was suspended by the Security Industry Authority. Licences are withdrawn when the SIA believes there is "a clear threat to public safety". This can include allegations that the holder has committed a crime or has failed to meet industry work or training standards. The agency refused to reveal why Dempster's licence was suspended. Ruchill is one of the most notorious firms in Scotland's crime-ravaged security industry. Dempster Snr, 50, was in the frame when arch-rival Rodden was gunned down by a hitman in an Amsterdam bar in 2001. Dempster denied responsibility and Rodden says he will never spill the beans, despite knowing who ordered the hit. Last night Ruchill refused to comment.

VIDEO: Club bouncer attacked with macheteTen thugs brandishing machetes almost severed a bouncer's foot outside the Bubble nightclub in Francis St at the weekend.Mr Warren likened the attack to the infamous 1995 assault on King St nightclubbers by murdered gangsters Alphonse Gangitano and Jason Moran."These guys (at the weekend) were never going to get into Bubble because they had ID scanning and metal detectors. One could only consider they were there to cause harm," he said."They were quite aware they were on video," he said.Security industry figure David Hedgecock said the injured man's achilles tendon had been severed in the attack.Mr Hedgecock said colleagues should be hailed as heroes for saving his life."They were going to finish him off. If they (other bouncers) hadn't rushed out and forced them back, he'd be dead. They (the gang) swarmed like wasps," Mr Hedgecock said.Mr Hedgecock, the former operator of the company for which the injured man works, said Bubble should not be blamed because the gang did not intend entering the venue."This is a well-organised military-style group. It's happening all over the place. They use this as a message that they're not to be mucked around with," he said.Mr Warren said Asian gangs had thrived since police disbanded its Asian crime squad three years ago."There is no intelligence-gathering agency assisting the working policemen to get information," he said."At the very least they need to have the ability to gather intelligence on these gangs and have someone who is analysing and disseminating the intelligence gained for the tactical police to control what's going on and have a look at some of these gangs."Sen-Det. Adrian Smith said the investigation was not simple."Because of the nature of the assault and the amount of people involved and that it looks targetted at the crowd controllers, it is a complex investigation," Sen-Det. Smith said.

Jason William Brown, 35, made an appearance in Surrey provincial court Monday and was remanded in custody until Dec. 2.His co-accused, Terra Lyn George, 24,was ordered released on $10,000 bail by Judge Jean Lytwyn, who is also presiding over the gun trial of Red Scorpion brothers Jamie and Jarrod Bacon.Abbotsford Police Const. Ian MacDonald said Monday that Brown was picked up at a Langley residence Saturday night after a four-day search by authorities.The one-time Hells Angel associate was charged Nov. 17 with two counts of possession for the purpose of trafficking, as well as possession of a restricted weapon and possession of a firearm while prohibited.When Abbotsford’s drug section raided Brown’s Aldergrove rental house five days earlier, they said they found two kilograms of cocaine with a value of $80,000, about a kilo of methamphetamine with a value of $25,000, a 9-mm handgun, a loaded magazine, boxes of ammunition, two bullet-proof vests, Red Scorpion paraphernalia and about $12,000 cash.While police now consider Brown to be a Red Scorpion, he was arrested in 2005 as a Hells Angel associate in the massive undercover operation targeting the East End Chapter of the notorious biker club.He was convicted of conspiracy to commit an indictable offence in 2007 and got a four-year sentence. He was on parole when the new charges were laidGeorge, ordered to make another appearance in Surrey provincial court Dec. 4, is facing almost identical charges to those of Brown. Brown has a lengthy history with police, according to the provincial court database. He has several convictions for driving while prohibited and impersonation, as well as being found guilty in the Hells Angels case.Meanwhile, the Bacon gun trial has adjourned until Dec. 3 when defence lawyers and Crown will argue in Surrey provincial court over the admissibility of four loaded guns found in a secret compartment of a vehicle the brothers drove prior to an April 13, 2007, shooting that brought police to their Surrey rental house

Two more cafes were firebombed Monday in the French-speaking Canadian city of Montreal, bringing the total of similar incidents to eight in the last month but the motives remain unclear, the Canadian Television reported. Cafe Nouba, the first non-Italian restaurant to be bombed, was hit for the second time Monday morning around 6:30 a.m. local time(1130 GMT). It was first attacked on Nov. 15. A second one, Cafe Vegas, was targeted about half an hour later. The two received very little damage and no one was injured. The string of Molotov cocktail attacks began in October. All the restaurants are located within a 15 minute drive of each other. Police say mob turf wars, street gangs or copycat arsonists could be involved, but they are not sure because the business owners are keeping quiet. In the 1990s, Quebec bars and restaurants were being continuously attacked as a biker gang turf war escalated.

Saturday, 21 November 2009

man has died and another man has been injured in a double shooting at a nightclub in the West Midlands.Police were called to Tropical Harmony nightclub in Bilston High Street, Wolverhampton, at about 0430 GMT. Two men were found with gunshot wounds and taken to hospital. One of the men later died. The second man's injuries are not believed to be life threatening. About 50 people were thought to have been in the club at the time. They have been asked to contact police.

Paul Joseph Derry, now lives in an undisclosed location somewhere in North America under a new identity after he agreed to testify about a Hells Angels contract killing in 2000. His testimony secured four murder convictions against three Hells Angels associates and one full-patch member, all now serving terms in prison.An RCMP document obtained by the Citizen shows that the commissioner of the force now wants to kick their once-coveted agent out of the witness protection program because he “made no attempt to disguise or alter” his voice. “By failing to disguise your voice ... you irrevocably permitted a (potential) voice comparison analysis link of your former identity to your new identity.”The RCMP commissioner’s decision to abandon the agent comes at a time when the national police force continues to afford protection and new identities for others in the federal witness program who have gone on to commit crimes — including murder — under new, government-expensed, aliases.The RCMP’s witness protection program termination notice is dated Oct. 22, and says the agent has until Nov. 11 to appeal. The agent has met with the Citizen twice and agreed to an interview Saturday.

“The Hells Angels are the most notorious and dangerous outlaw motorcycle club in the world. Putting a full-patch member and three of his associates in prison for the rest of their lives is unforgiveable to the Hells (Angels),” he said in the interview.

“I think getting kicked out of the program puts me one step closer to getting a bullet in the back of the head.” He believes his tumultuous relationship with the Mounties may be related to the fact that he warned the force about a murder plot two weeks before it happened. The RCMP didn’t take his claims seriously, and the contract killing of Sean Simmons, a steamship checker on the Halifax waterfront, went ahead. To be fair to his RCMP handlers — including Mike Cabana, a lead investigator in the Maher Arar affair — they weren’t given specifics on the Hells Angels contract killing. Still, as their informant learned more details about the plot, the RCMP officers never returned his calls in the hours leading up to the killing.It is clear, however, that Cabana, promoted to assistant RCMP commissioner after the Arar probe, was worried about the public’s take on what went wrong with the 2000 Hells Angels contract killing. “Should this matter proceed to court, this information will likely be disclosed, thereby tarnishing the Force’s reputation, not to mention any potential civil liability that might flow from this situation,” Cabana wrote in an internal RCMP memo obtained by the Citizen. The agent told the Citizen that others should think twice before they agree to testify against gangsters in exchange for a life in the witness protection program.“The program has great potential and is needed; however, the public would be much better served if the RCMP had both accountability and were forced to hear constructive input from those they are protecting. “The way it is now, I do not believe there is enough support upon entrance to be worth risking one’s life.”When he was working as an RCMP agent, he recalled:“I told them that there was a hit going down ...“At that point in time, I wasn’t sure of the name. I wasn’t sure who it was; I just knew that there was a hit going down … They (the RCMP) said they’d get back to me. “They were still deciding whether they’d work with me. So … the Friday before the murder, I called back … This time I … knew who was gonna be killed. “I tried to get a hold of them and they said they’d call me back on Monday. Sean (Simmons) was killed on Tuesday … they still hadn't got back to me,” Derry told police.“But they never got back to me and it was too late. I thought they were going to stop the murder but they didn’t.”

Saturday, 7 November 2009

Juan Crispin, 38, claimed the 20-year minimum term he must serve under a life sentence for the murder of Eleni Pachou was excessive.But judges at the Court of Criminal Appeal in Edinburgh said the sentence was "entirely appropriate" even for a first offender. Lady Paton, hearing the appeal with Lord Carloway, said: "It was a truly appalling and despicable crime with many aggravating features, not least that an accomplished young woman lost her life in a nightmare attack."She said Crispin had tricked his former colleague into a late-night meeting at Di Maggio's in Glasgow's Byres Road area in May last year "when there was no one nearby to help or protect her".Greek national Ms Pachou, 25, died after suffering 17 stab wounds. More than £1300 had been taken from the safe.Crispin's former lover, Marion Hinshelwood, 44, said he had planned the robbery as he was desperate for money.Cleaner Hinshelwood, of Dowanhill, Glasgow, pled guilty to the culpable homicide of the victim on the basis that she had provided the knife. She was jailed for four and a half years.